EDWARDS — Helping small business owners and minority contractors are two priorities laid out in the annual State of the County address given Wednesday morning to a packed hall at Wildlife Prairie Park.

The annual address to the area’s elected officials and business leaders gave a general recap of the county’s trials and tribulations over the past year. Peoria County Administrator Lori Curtis Luther highlighted the historic spring flooding, the installation of a new criminal justice computer system and the opening of Heddington Oaks, the county’s new skilled nursing facility.

But economic development was at the forefront during her 30-minute speech. Helping minority contractors was a key facet. Luther said the county hopes to grow the stable of minority contractors within the county through a new initiative that would identify contractors and evaluate their operations to see where they could use help.

Assistant County Administrator Mark Rothert said after the speech the county already has received bids from organizations seeking to participate in the program. He said the program will likely start later this spring.

The other key initiative touted was the Greater Peoria SourceLink website, which will be modeled after sites in other communities.

“This comprehensive platform will unite existing programs in a collaborative network in order to provide reliable business development information to entrepreneurs,” Luther said.

Seen as a one-stop shop for business owners, the idea behind SourceLink is to aggregate information found on the Internet at one site so a person can enter a few bits of information about their company and find out what is available to help their business.

Rothert, after the speech, said the website will launch this spring and cost about $100,000 over a five-year period. That money came from a federal grant four years ago when the county was looking to set up a “bricks and mortar” incubator. Instead, the county opted to shelve that idea and go for something web-based on the theory that it would cost less and reach more people.

Luther also mentioned the “Flying Fish Festival” in July, encouraging residents to “grab a harpoon and help stem the population of Asian carp.” That got good marks from County Board member Brad Harding, who represents a rural area.

“For too long I feel we have leaned too far toward the city so if we can help the areas under our jurisdiction, that’s great,” he said. “The Illinois River is a tremendous asset to all and if we can turn this Asian carp menace into a profit center, then I am all for it.”

Andy Kravetz can be reached at 686-3283 or akravetz@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @andykravetz.